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ID Blacklight Test Complete Guide

ID Blacklight Test Complete Guide

Passports universally feature UV security features

Use a UV light like Dri Mark’s UV Pro to uncover hidden UV security features.

How to authenticate credit cards

Major credit card companies use holograms and hidden UV features to help to authenticate their cards.

  • Visa uses a dove hologram
  • MasterCard uses a world map
  • Discover uses a globe
  • AmEx cards have a hologram of the American Express image that is embedded into the magnetic strip. On select cards there is phosphorescence in the Centurion portrait and the words “AMEX” are visible under a UV light.

blacklight on amex card

Complete State Information Guide

Click here for the ID Blacklight Test Complete Guide PDF

States without an UV image on their license:

  • Maine
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Tennessee

Individual State Information

state id icon

Click a state below to go to information:
Alabama | Alaska | Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | District of Columbia | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii | Idaho | Illinois | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas | Kentucky | Louisiana | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | Nebraska | Nevada | New Hampshire | New Jersey | New Mexico | New York | Ohio | Oklahoma | Oregon | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | South Carolina | South Dakota | Texas | Utah | Vermont | Virginia | Washington | West Virginia | Wisconsin | Wyoming

Alabama Driver’s License

UV ink of state’s seal will appear on front plus state seal will overlap upper right corner of photo and is visible under a UV light.

Alaska Driver’s License

“Alaska” repeats on left and right edge of license and is visible under a UV light.

Arizona Driver’s License

Round State Seal visible on front middle under UV light.

Arkansas Driver’s License

State outline appears randomly in three rows across top, middle and bottom of license under a UV light.

California Driver’s License

Under a UV light a second ghost image will appear above the black and white portrait and birthdate will vertically appear across large color picture. Licenses prior to October 2010 will have a multicolor state flag appear (usually 3 can be seen) on lower front of the ID.

Colorado Driver’s License

State seal appears in UV ink on lower third on front for all licenses after July 2002

Connecticut Driver’s License

License number, holders name, birth date and two lighthouses are visible on the front in UV ink. On the back are repeating state name inside the state outline which are visible under UV light.

Delaware Driver’s License

A second ghost image on the right-hand side will appear under UV light. Prior license will have a holographic overlay with repeating pattern of horse and rider as well as a state seal in UV ink on the back.

District of Columbia Driver’s License

Security overlay with “WASHINGTON DC” and “THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE” visible under a UV light.

Florida Driver’s License

Large photo ID license has a secondary ghost image and holders name visible under a UV light. Smaller photo ID’s display state seal overlapping photo plus “FLORIDA” repeats under a UV light.

Georgia Driver’s License

Current (fine line background) front state seal and “Georgia” that glows under UV light. Prior to 2009 IDs contain no UV security features.

Hawaii Driver’s License

A row of Hibiscus flowers repeats ON BACK of license. Prior to 2011, ID has “HAWAII” repeating across left and right edges of license visible under UV light.

Idaho Driver’s License

Current (fine line background) features a partial state outline and “IDAHO” will appear twice under a UV light. Prior to 2012 a pattern of the state outline and “IDAHO” will repeat diagonal under a UV light.

Illinois Driver’s License

Has a small ghost image of a portion of “ILLINOIS” repeats across the face of the license under a UV light. Prior licenses have “A Safer State with .08” repeats across the license.

Indiana Driver’s License

A second ghost image of the holder’s name, birth date runs across the top and bottom of the larger photo and is visible under a UV light. Prior IDs show a pattern of a torch and stars.

Iowa Driver’s License

Has a state seal visible under UV on the front of the ID. The back of the license has a ghost UV image of the card holder’s name and birthdate which will appear under a UV light. Prior licenses the state name will repeat in UV ink, with final last “IOWA” preceded by two stars.

Kansas Driver’s License

Will display one state flower on front and card holder name and birthdate will appear in a ghost image on the back which is visible under UV light. Prior licenses have a row of state flowers and “KANSAS” across the top which is visible under a UV light.

Kentucky Driver’s License

Repeating phrase “THE BLUE GRASS STATE” will appear to the right of the card holder’s picture which is visible under a UV light.

Louisiana Driver’s License

The state seal repeats across the middle of the ID in full color UV ink which is visible under a UV light.

Maryland Driver’s License

Staggered lines of “Maryland” repeats across the face of the ID which is visible under a UV light.

Massachusetts Driver’s License

State seal repeating in UV ink with a perforated state outline overlapping top of ghost image visible with a UV light. 

Michigan Driver’s License

The state seal is visible in the center of the front of the ID. The back of the ID features the holder’s birth date and ghost image that is visible under a UV light. The current Enhanced license features the state seal repeating on the front of the ID which is visible under a UV light.

Minnesota Driver’s License

Features a large color state seal on the front which is visible under a UV light.

Mississippi Driver’s License

Features the state seal and the outline of the letters “DPS” which are visible under a UV light.

Missouri Driver’s License

Features the letters “MO”, three stars and the state seal in the upper right hand corner which is visible under a UV light.

Montana Driver’s License

A repeating pick and shovel crossed image is featured on the front of the ID which is visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature the word “MONTANA’ repeating diagonally across the front of the ID which is visible under a UV light.

Nebraska Driver’s License

Features the letters “Ne” under the word Nebraska as well as the state seal and d a star on the bottom right-hand side of the photo, all of which are visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature a variable pattern of the state name and seal which are visible under a UV light.

Nevada Driver’s License

Additional state seals appear on the upper front of ID which is visible under a UV light. Licenses prior to 2008 have no UV features.

New Hampshire Driver’s License

“New Hampshire” appears twice vertically at left and right side under an UV light. Older licenses feature a gold “NEW HAMPSHIRE” in the same heading style repeating on the front and is visible under a UV light.

New Jersey Driver’s License

Visible under a UV light, “NEW JERSEY” repeats on the top and bottom, of the ID with the state outline appearing in the middle. On older licenses driver’s name and birth date will appear on the bottom half of the large photo under a UV light.

New Mexico Driver’s License

The words “NEW” and “MEXICO” repeat diagonally across the center of the ID. A row of small squares is visible on the bottom and three diamonds appear across the top of the license. Older licenses will either have the state name and symbol on the back OR the state outline which are visible under a UV light.

New York Driver’s License

Two coats of arms will appear under a UV light, one in the center and a smaller second image across the top of the photo. “NY” will repeat in rows across the back, visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature one large coat of arms on the front, visible under a UV light.

Ohio Driver’s License

State outline featured in the upper right corner of the photo and the state seal is on the bottom of right corner of the ID. Both are visible under a UV light. Older licenses have no UV features.

Oklahoma Driver’s License

The state seal and the Department of Public Safety seal are featured in a repeating pattern across the front of the license and are visible under a UV light.

Oregon Driver’s License

“Oregon” is diagonally repeated on the front of the ID and is visible under a UV light.

Pennsylvania Driver’s License

Features the outline of a keystone with the letters “PA” repeating across the top of the ID. “PA” also repeats across the back of the ID. Both are visible under a UV light.

Rhode Island Driver’s License

Features the state flag emblem (anchor surrounded by stars) which is visible under a UV light.

South Carolina Driver’s License

Palmetto tree appears on the front center of the ID and is visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature no visible UV features.

South Dakota Driver’s License

Features a second ghost image on the right-hand side of the ID and “SOUTH DAKOTA” three times starting in the lower left side and runs across the photo in a wave pattern to the right side. This pattern is visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature “South Dakota” repeating in stylized script across the front of the license, visible under a UV light.

Texas Driver’s License

Features the state seal and three stars on the front of the ID which are visible under a UV light. On the back of the license a ghost image and birthdate are visible under a UV light. Older licenses have “TEXAS” repeating, which is visible under a UV light.

Utah Driver’s License

Features a “UT” repeating in two rows across the ID, under a UV light the top row will be upside down.

Vermont Driver’s License

“Vermont” appears and repeats diagonally across the top and horizontally across the bottom front of the ID, which is visible under a UV light. 

Virginia Driver’s License

Features the state seal, DMV logo and text which is visible under a UV light. Licenses prior to 2009 have no UV features.

Washington Driver’s License

Features an image of the state seal across the middle of the ID and is visible under a UV light.

West Virginia Driver’s License

“West Virginia” and the state seal appear on the back of the ID and are visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature the state outline with a yellow overlapping “WV” repeating across the front. The state seal overlaps the photo at the bottom of the ID. All features are visible under a UV light.

Wisconsin Driver’s License

Features the state seal on the upper right-hand corner of the front of the ID on the large portrait with a “W” underneath and “1848” vertically, all of which are visible under a UV light. Older IDs feature wavy stripes visible under a UV light with one wavy line with “Wisconsin” on the middle. Older licenses also have “WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION” visible under a UV light.

Wyoming Driver’s License

Features a second ghost image, holder’s name and birthdate on the front of the ID. On the back of the ID is bucking horse, liberty bell and state motto. All are visible under a UV light. Older licenses feature a repeating pattern of “Wyoming: which is visible under a UV light.